One of the hardest parts of keeping the Disney trip a secret from Lilli was getting some of the normal, necessary vacation tasks completed without her asking too many questions. Even things like bringing suitcases out of the attic and gathering up various clothes and daily necessities would definitely be enough for her to ask questions. And one of the really big clues is dropping off Pippin at the kennel! She’s traveled enough to know why he gets dropped off there, and we always use the same great kennel (Dogtopia). Since our flight left at 6:40 am on Monday morning there was really no other choice than dropping him off on Sunday. And, their Sunday hours are limited for just drop off and pick ups (no doggie daycare or grooming), so he had to be dropped off fairly early between 11-2.

After church we ate some lunch and Brent told Lilli we needed to drop off Pippin for a haircut. I have no clue why she would think that’s normal since the short haired (and balding) dog has NEVER had a haircut nor a need for it, but she went right along with the story. (So much so that when we picked him up after we flew back in she announced that she could tell his hair look shorter. HA!) Then Brent took her around for a few little shopping errands so that gave me about an hour and a half to gather up all the clothes and things she would need for the trip and sneak our suitcases into our room to pack everything during nap time.

One of the things he took her to do was to pick out a birthday card for me. Luckily he did NOT let her pick that card. (She ended up getting me a Disney princess one for “Happy Birthday Niece”.)

She did pick out this lovely “decoration” for me. It’s every bit as fancy in person as it looks here.

They got home just in time for Lilli’s afternoon nap. She’s normally pretty good about taking a nap from about 2/2:30-4/4:30 in the afternoon on weekends. She may play for a little while but generally still falls asleep, or at the very least stays in her room and quietly plays with toys and books in her bed. For whatever reason (probably because I had lots of secret stuff to do!) that did NOT happen that day. And Brent was working out in the yard, so there was no other buffer in the house. TWICE she actually got out of bed and came in our room – where I had suitcases and clothes everywhere, as well as a few surprises like a new Cinderella backpack for her. Every time I saw her face pop in I jumped up and ushered her out into the hall, and somehow was able to be fast enough to avoid questions. Finally, I just gave up on naptime just in time to see her little friend Serif strolling by with his Mom for an afternoon walk (he was also refusing to rest – must have been something in the atmosphere that day!). We went outside to talk for a few minutes and the two of them ran all up and down the sidewalk collecting various bits of “nature”.

I really wasn’t too upset about the missing nap since we were aiming to get her in bed early (since she’d have to get up at 4:30, ugh!). Ironically that night she wanted to sleep with her Fairy Godmother.

Next up…..Disney!!!

Still no progress on me being able to hear better – so frustrating to hear (what I can) so muted. It’s like having a bag of cotton balls or earplugs in at all times. At times I think it may be starting to get slightly better, but that’s still VERY slight. I’m going back to acupuncture on Saturday and hoping that keeping that up will help. Maybe some extra rest this weekend will help, too.